Techniques featured on this page:
Journaling: You say it Best: Your own handwriting is essential to a true "scrap" book. When you find a scrap of writing or a letter from a grandparent today, don't you cherish it? The same will be said of your writining in your books.
Rebecca Sower's Style: Use one photo per page, tags in your layout, handwritten journaling, deep dark colors, and torn paper
Manipulated Photos: The standard Microsoft Photo editor will let you create a line drawing of a photo (this one had terrible lighting and wouldn't have been salvagable otherwise...) and jazz up your layouts.